Inkstand



(No Model.) 2 Sheets-Sheet l;

Bpi'. HBNKLB.

INKSTAND.

No. 397,989.l Patented Feb. 19, 1889.9

2 sheets-sheet 2.A

(No Model.)

B-` F. HENKLB.

INKSTAND. y No' 397983' Patented. Feb. 19,1889.

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5 y 1 j' a UNITED STATES PATENT EEICE.

BENJAMIN F. HENKLE, OF IVOODENSBURG, MARYLAND.

INKSTAN D.

SPECIFICATION forming part of Letters Patent No. 397,983, dated February 19, 1889. Application illed September 5, 1887. Renewed October ll, 1888. Serial No. 287,857. (No model.)

To all whom, it may concern.-

Be it known that I, BENJAMIN F. HENKLE, a citizen of the United States, residing at lVoodensburg, in the county of Baltimore and State of Maryland, have invented certain new and useful Improvements in Inkstands; and I do declare the following to be a full, clear, and exact description of the invention, such as will enable others skilled in the art to which it appertains to make and use the same.

My invention relates to that class of inkstands in which the depth of dip of the pen is regulated by an adjustable gage-plate adapted to be placed in the body of the ink and the desired distance below its surface.

It is the object of my invention to provide adj usting devices for such a plate which will constantly maintain, no matter what may be the vertical position of the plate,a fixed relation to the inkstand.

By my invention I insure that there shall be no projections of varying' distance above the top of the stand according to the height of the plate, and thus produce an article neat and uniform in appearance and one not liable to be overturned byobjects striking or catching upon such projections. Moreover, where the plate-adj listing' devices surround the dipopen ing of the inkstand, I am enabled to apply a hinged cover of the ordinary character, which could not be done if the adjustment of the plate involved a change of distance of such adjusting devices above the top of the inkstand.

My invention comprises, essentially, a nut carried by a gage-plate and a vertical screwthreaded shaft or shafts engaging' with said nutand secured to the cover of the stand in such manner as to be capable of' rotary or incapable of vertical movement.

My invention further comprises certain details of construction hereinafter particularly described and set. forth.

In order to enable myiuvention to be clearly understood, I have shown in the accompanying drawings means t'or carrying the saine into effect. j p

In said drawings, Figure l is a vertical section of an inkstand embodying my invention. Fig. 2 is a horizontal section on line 2 2, Fig. l. Fig. 3 is a top view of the gage-plate and a portion of its adjusting devicesA .Figs 4, 5,

and G are vertical sections illustrating other forms of inkstand also embodying my invention.

Referring to the drawings, A indicates the body of my inkstand, which is made, preferably, Of glass, but which may be of any other suitable material. It is provided with notches or recesses a around its upper edge. In these recesses fit headed bolts b, which pass up through holes in the top B and are provided at their upper ends with nuts b', adapted to be forced down upon the top and clamp the latter securely and rigidly to the body A.

The cover C is preferably hinged, the support for its pivot c being furnished by a bracket, b2, carried by the top B. The hinge may, however, be dispensed with and an entirely removable cover maybe employed.

D indicates the adjustable gage-plate, situated within the body of the stand beneath the dip-opening B', and preferably extending entirely across the ink-reseiwoir, as shown, its

periphery being in close proximity to thewalls of the reservoir. The plate is provided with a number of notches or perforations, d, for the passage of the ink.

E is a nut or nuts carried by the plate D and made rigid with or secured from rotation in the same.

F indicates a screw or screws mounted in a stationary portion of the inkstand, so as to be capable of rotation, but held from endwise movement. This bearing may be furnished by the top B, as indicated in Figs. 5 and 6,01' by an auxiliary plate, B2, as seen in Figs. i, 2, and 4.

Screws F engage the nuts E by their threads, and it will thus be seen that when they are rotated a vertical movement of the plate I) results, said plate being carried by the nuts. This rotation of the longitudinally-stationary screws F may be effected in various ways appropriate to my invention. By preference I provide the screw or screws with gear-wheels G, which mesh with and are adapted to be rotated by a toothed sleeve, Il. The lattersurrounds the dip-opening of the top B and has its bearing therein. As seen in Figs. l and 4, said sleeve has a peripheral flange, 71, which lits against the under surface of the top. Above said top it is provided with a detachable annulus, I, which may be clamped to the sis IOO

sleeve by a set-screw, i, or other suitable device. The annulus I may be milled, so as to be easily held and rotated by the thumb and finger. Then such rotation is given to it, it will be seen, without further explanation, that by the corresponding rotation of the toothed sleeve ll, engaging the wheel or wheels G, the screws F are revolved, thus eitecting the vertical adjustment of the plate D, as already described, up or down, according to the direction of rotation of the annulus l. Said annulus and its toothed sleeve may, however, be dispensed with and the longit-udinally-stationary scrcwl? continued through and above the top B and provided with a peripheral flangej", fitting against the under side ot' the top, and with a removable handle, J, which correspomilingly and oppositely fits the upper surface of said top. The nuts E being the only parts besides the plate l) which have vertical movement, and these being-contained within the body of the inkstand, it will be seen that there will be no projection ot varying height above the top oi the inkstand to interfere with the operation of the cover or give opportunity for being struck or caught, wit-h the risk ot' spilling the ink; but, on the contrary, the outside of the article always presents a uniform, neat, and `finished appearance.

The nuts E are made to project below the lower face of the plate D, in order to furnish stops which will arrest the downward movement of the plate before it reaches the bottom of the reservoir. I thus insure that the inl: above the plate into which the pen is dipped shall be ii'ree from sediment.

In order to prevent any binding between the screws and nuts and between the gageplate and the walls oi. the reservoir, the nuts may be made separate from the gage-plate and fitted thereto by a ton gue-and-groove connection, as shown in Figs. l and 3. This freedom of movement ot` the plate and nut rela,- tive to each other obviates the necessity for the accurate workmanship in the fitting of Vthe parts which would otherwise be required, especially when two screws are employed, as shown in Fig. l. The nut and plate may, however, be 'formed in one piece or ri gidly secured together, as shown in Fig. i.

l prefer to malto the gage-plate, screws, and nuts of non-corrosive material, such as wood, hard rubber, or celluloid.

It is of course'necessary that the gage-plate should be held so that while it can move vertically it shall not be able to rotate. There two screws are used, as in Fig. l, no other means are necessary t'or this purpose otA pre-l venting said rotation. ln constructions like Fig. 4, also, (and the saine is true of Fig. 6,) nothing` is needed to prevent this rotation beyond the parts already described, the gageplate being approximately of the same size as the cross-section of the reservoir, and the screw which engages it being eccentrically situated.

Xl here a single screw concentrically situated is used, however, in a round l inkstand, some additional holding device is necessary. A very convenient means consists in providing the gage-plate with a projection or a notch, and the inkstand correspondingly with a groove or a rib. The latter construction is illustrated in Fig. 5.

l ain aware of Patent No. 369,101., in which a compressing-plate is situated beneath an elastic reservoir, and l do not wish my claims to be understood as extending to such construction.

Having thus, described my invention, what l claim, and desire to secure by Letters `Patent ot the United States, is-- l. In an inkstand, the combination, with the reservoir and top having a dip-opening, of a gage-plate situated beneath the opening and within the ink-reservoir proper above its bottom and held from rotation, a nut carrying said plate, a screw-shaft engagingthe nut by its thread, and having a bearing in a portion of the stand in which the shaft rotates and is held lfrom vertical movement, and an external thumb-nut or handle tor rotatin the shaft, whereby the plate may be adjusted vertically within the body ot the liuid, substantially as set forth.

2. The combination, with the reservoir and top having a dip-openin g, of a gage-plate situated within. the reservoir and beneath the opening and held from rotation, a nut carrying said plate, a screw-shaft engaging the nut by its thread, and having a bearing in a portion of the stand in which the shaft rotates and is held from vertical movement, a gearwheel carricd by the shaft, an d a toothed IOO sleeve surrounding the dip-opening and engagin g said wheel, the outer end ofthe sleeve being adapted to be adjust the gage-plate, scribed.

3. The combination, with the reservoir and top having a dip-opening, of a gage-plate within the reservoir and beneath the opening,a plurality of nuts carrying said plate, corresponding screw shafts engaging said nuts by their threads. and having bearings in a portion of the stand in which they may revolve but are held 'from vertical movement, gearwheels carried by the shafts, and a toothed sleeve situated in the opening and engaging said wheels, substantially as set forth.

Il. The combination, in an inkstand, with the reservoir, of a vertically-adjustable gageplate situated beneath the dip-opening and having one or more nuts secured therein, and forming also projections upon its under surface, whereby it is arrested at a predetermined distance above the bottom of the reservoir, substantially as set forth.

In testimony whereof I affix my si gnature in the presence of two witnesses.

BENJAMlN F. HENKLE.

substantially as deturned to actuate and,

IIS 

